Beneath The Heavens are "The Supreme Albings." They are the enforcers of Heaven's law that binds this world. This law is called "The Law of the Albings"
Beneath The Supreme Albings, are the Zeniths. The heeders of The Supreme Albings's command and the power source of all Humaas beneath Heaven.
Leonard felt a tremor as he heard these words strike in his head. "Albings… Zeniths…"
"One week!"
"As Emperor of the Orvane Continent, I grant you seven days to prove your innocence. You have claimed not guilty from the start and a ruler must always remain impartial. I do not wish for injustice, hence you will be given time to expose the true culprit who has framed you and present proof. If you fail, you will be executed and no pleas will be heard."
"I am sure we have a mutual understanding, King Alessien."
"Your magnanimity is world shaking, Your Imperial Majesty!"
"Any objection?"
Leonard opened his eyes slowly. He scanned the crowd and when he saw the king kneeling before the emperor, praising him, his lips curled coldly.
'It appears… I have returned. And with a whole new lots of informations'
"Release him!" the order was given.
He calmly assessed the situation.
'I cannot miscalculate again'
Though he was used to pain and dying, it did not mean he enjoyed it. No one liked the idea of pain.
He had no desire to die in this life, thus he would try to prevent it as much as he can.
'This is my 14th rebirth'
…..
Leonard was in his dormitory again.
At the edge of the worn out bed, he sat with arms folded. His head hung low.
"What can I do now?" He tapped the sole of his dark green boot on the floor. The king was out of question.
He tipped his head backward and stared expressionlessly at the wooden ceiling with holes in them.
His dorm was among the worst in the academy. Such power play as this was a thing in this world. The more strength you have and the greater your background, the easier life is and the better you are treated by peers and the professors. Even though his father was a king, it did not matter for a weak student like him who had not managed to awaken his bloodline.
"Beneath The Supreme Albings are the two Zeniths, called the black and white Zeniths. These Zeniths can only touch a Humaa with a strong bloodline. A weak bloodline means no awakening. But… this body does not possess a weak bloodline. Why then, did the original soul never manage to awaken?"
Every awakening occurred at the very strike of age sixteen, and this awakening leads into the world of Echelons. Echelons are Humaas, empowered and touched by the Zeniths. The Echelon levels stretched from 1 to 11, however, due to a certain law, no Echelon above they level of five has yet to be seen. In the continent at least.
The emperor was the only currently known Echelon 5.
Leonard blinked slowly. "This certain law states that to ascend, one must defeat or kill an Echelon a level higher than they are. When a person achieves such a feat, a phenomenon called the Zeniths's Touch occurs, thus, pushing the ascension of the said Echelon to a higher rank."
The body he was occupying was not even a mere Echelon 1. Leonard was simply one of the unawakened cases.
To make matters worse, he was penniless, left with six silver and two gold in his pocket. Eight measly coins in total.
He could accept the lack of strength, but to be this poor? He did not dwell on the matter.
"Since it's out of the question to rely on the king, I must do this another way. But to do so, I still need money…"
Buried in his thoughts, a hard knock made him lift his white lashes.
"Strange…"
In the past, no one came to his dorm, not even after ten hours of his release. Only three hours have gone by now…
Leonard snatched his knife with thin fingers and moved toward the door. Opening slightly, he narrowed his eyes at a figure draped from head to toe in thick black clothes.
These Vamp Humaas covered up during the day to avoid burning from the sun. Night was their day and the day would be considered night for them, a time when they could only sleep.
It was daytime now and for someone to come find him at such a time…
"Who are you?" he asked, composed. Though, his eyes moved to the floating Halo shaped object above the person's head.
To tell the Echelon level of each Humaa, it could be discerned from the Halo. Each Echelon level all had a different colored Halo. And the darker the colors of these Halos, the stronger a person was. Naturally, the lightness of a halo indicated weakness in that particular level.
An Echelon 4 with a darker colored Halo would be able to defeat an Echelon 4 with a light colored Halo. Killing though was too uncertain.
This man before him, his Halo was the shade of a darkened ocean blue. He was an Echelon 3 and a strong one at that.
"Your father sent me," the man said through the cloth over his mouth.
"My father?" Leonard's brows knitted faintly.
"He wishes to see you."
His mouth pressed into a flat line. This did not happen before his rebirth. And if he went, Leonard knew he'd be killed again'
"I'll pay him a visit soon," he said simply.
The man paused, then nodded and left.
Leonard closed the door and sat on the floor.
In his memories, he found something interesting. An Information Bureau. This was a place where information on any inquiry was exchanged and bought. He could buy some information on this case there.
But the hall does not open until evening.
Upon looking at the clock on the wall, he realized there was still twelve hours to wait.
And so, Leonard proceeded to spend these hours searching through his memories. What could have caused this body to fail Echelon ascension?
The boy had been tested once by his father and his bloodline was proven to be strong. Due to this, the king expected a sudden burst in strength upon his awakening. Alas nothing came.
"Hm. Odd." Leonard squinted his eyes. "Why do I have no memories of the original soul's awakening attempt? Why did he fail?"
He dropped his white lashes low and hung his head down.
'Why am I missing these particular memories?' He thought hard, but could not understand nor recall.
"How then do I awaken his bloodline?" he asked the wall facing him.
By dusk, he gave up. He found nothing.
"Forget it. I'll focus on saving myself for now." He buttoned up his pale green combat uniform and headed out.
The local Information Bureau within the Eastern Kingdom wasn't too far from the royal academy. It stood at the end of the street, cream painted. Many glowing lamps hung off the wall, and a large statue of the emperor was erected in the compound.
Leonard went inside.
Guards were situated at every corner. Many young people and elders walked to and fro the massive hall, while a few hundreds moved between reception desks.
He approached the only empty one.
Behind the desk stood a man with a badge on his chest. Information Master Sevan, rank 50.
Master Sevan frowned upon seeing him. He was bald. "What do you want, boy?"
"May I inquire about some information?" Leonard asked.
"This is the information bureau. Of course you can."
"Then can I–"
"You must pay first."
Leonard paused. "Pay?"
"Are you an idiot? Everybody knows no coins, no information."
"How much?"
"Fifty gold coins per piece of information. Hundred for two. Can you afford that?"
Leonard knitted his brows barely noticeably. Fifty gold coins? For a piece of information?
"I cannot pay that much. Can I get a loan?"
"Absolutely not!" Master Sevan's voice chilled.
"Why?"
Master Sevan looked his frail boyish figure up and down and spat out coldly, "Lad, you're sixteen. The minimum age to qualify for a loan is twenty. Unless you bring a guardian."
That was impossible. Leonard said, "I have six silver and two gold. Can you–"
"Leave."
"I-"
"I advise you not to provoke me, boy. Get out."
Leonard stared at him. He did not want to draw unnecessary attention to himself, thus, he left the hall.
Outside, he only sighed. "There is only one way for me to earn money now."
And that was the academy's respective factions.
The royal combat academy of the Eastern Kingdom housed many factions that trained the students for the future after graduating. These factions ranged from the Political faction, to ones like Information faction, Weapon faction, Military faction and many others. He belonged in the Mystery Faction that investigated and learned how to unravel mysteries. On Earth, they would be similar to apprentice detectives.
Leonard rubbed his chin in deep thought. "No wonder I am so poor. This boy never solved a single case."
Bright light illuminated his eyes as he made up his mind.
'I will head to class and take a posted case. Unravel it and perhaps, I might earn at least fifty coins or even more. That will be enough to buy a single piece of information'
He had six days until execution. But Leonard did not panic at all. A calm mind allowed him to think better, after all, in precarious situations, the maintenance of a calm state of mind gives way for rational decisions.
Otherwise, errors were bound to occur.
He left.